


Afraid of Losing You

by rainbowthefox



Category: Mystery Skulls Animated
Genre: F/M, Gen, lewis x vivi, lewvi - Freeform, msa - Freeform, mystery skulls - Freeform, mystery skulls animated - Freeform, shiromori - Freeform, vivi x lewis
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-09
Updated: 2017-06-24
Packaged: 2018-09-15 22:57:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,669
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9261851
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rainbowthefox/pseuds/rainbowthefox
Summary: The gang is back together, but they are not free. Someone from Mystery's past is after them, and it's up to Lewis to defend Arthur and Vivi. (AU. A MSA/Mystery Skulls Animated fic. Lewis/Vivi. Sequel to "Understanding".)





	1. Colder

**Author's Note:**

> This is a SEQUEL to a previous fic of mine. Read it here: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/11018230/1/Understanding

A crisp, autumn evening...

The weather had been a little flaky in their town recently. They had a thunderstorm last week and it was said to expect snow sometime soon. It was getting real windy, though, and this concerned Vivi. The weatherman often made mistakes and predicted unlikely forecasts. Maybe the snow was supposed to be a tornado, she wondered?

Vivi took the pencil out of her mouth and scribbled down a few more notes. She'd been observing the weather for signs of another storm. Just for the sake of preparing, of course. They bought some new, expensive equipment recently and she couldn't let that get damaged. Not after Arthur nearly broke their new camera.

It's been a year since Lewis re-joined the Mystery Skulls crew. After the eventful(and emotional) trip they went through, the gang decided to take it easy for the first few months. They went back into investigating and, with Lewis, their profits increased fantastically. It was really beneficial to have a ghost on your crew while you communicated with other spirits. They finally had someone to take care of the physical labor and heave their equipment around all day.

Yes, the Mystery Skulls crew was revived. They were just as fast, sophisticated, experienced, and intelligent as they were years ago.

\--

 

**"AAHHH! OHMYGOD OHMYGOD! LEWIS GET SOME WATER! I'M DYING!"**

The skeleton ran into their kitchen and came back with a bucket-full of water. He shoved it into Arthur's mouth and the teen took about 10 gulps before letting out a loud belch. He wiped the tears from his eyes and took deep breaths, clutching the counter next to him.

"W....W....Whew.."

"I told you that was a stupid idea." Lewis threw the bucket on his head. "You can't eat a ghost pepper, Arthur. I told you that."

Arthur muffled a few words underneath the bucket before he took it off. He shook the water out from his hair and tossed it on the ground, rolling his eyes. He said, "Whatever. I totally don't owe you 20 bucks, though."

Arthur had the greatest idea to make a bet with Lewis. The bet was, obvious as it is, to eat a single ghost pepper. Clearly Arthur had trouble with spiciness and Lewis couldn't eat anything, so it was a pointless attempt for the both of them. But they really had nothing else to do. They couldn't take cases in weather like this.

"Yeah, I'll remember that when you're standing on the edge of a cliff." Lewis retorted and floated over to the couch. He laid down and took the remote from the table, turning the TV on. "Let's just hope the wind didn't screw up the cable again."

Lewis and Arthur still didn't get along. While the ghost said he forgave them and that they were friends awhile back, it didn't really seem like it. The two of them had trust issues and having them team up together was barely an option. If anything, it was Vivi that tied them all together in the end. Something needed to be done about them soon, or Arthur surely wouldn't be here for long.

The teen gulped at that thought and wiped the sweat off of his forehead. All he could do is pray and try to get Lewis to like him again. As impossible as it seemed, he was really trying. Maybe he should buy him a gift basket or something...

" **DAMN IT!** " The ghost threw the remote on the ground. Arthur looked and saw the TV playing static across from him. Lewis held his skull in his hands and said some muffled swears. He couldn't blame him, quite frankly. Without TV, there wasn't much to do to pass the time...

Mystery shuffled from the chair across the room and yawned. He'd been taking a nap until Lewis woke him up. Arthur walked over to the dog and petted him.

"It's fine, Lewis." Arthur assured him as he sat down in the chair. "It's getting late, anyway. We'll just fix it tomorrow."

"It's not THAT I'm mad about." He replied. "It's the fact that this has been the 5th time this month. This town hasn't had such bad weather before. What happened?"

Figuring that the team stayed in Arthur's house nowadays, it may have been because of how fragile his place is. The doors had to be shut carefully, there were too many leaks for anyone's liking, and some of the windows had to be boarded up. Arthur gave Lewis a nervous smile as he shrugged.

"Eh, I don't know? Maybe it's just 'cause the weather is getting colder..."

" _That's not it, though!_ " Vivi suddenly barged into the room. A notepad was held in her hands and a couple of pencils were shoved in her hair. Lewis perked up when she sat in his lap and dug her head back into her notes. At the lack of an explanation, Arthur tilted his head.

"Wha-? What else could be the reason, V?"

"Completely none." She answered and leaned back onto Lewis' chest. "There's been an unknown disturbance in the weather recently. A couple of months ago, wind speeds were low and the temperate was quite average. Out of nowhere came a shift and this weather hasn't been in any other region."

"So you're saying something caused this, but we don't know?" Arthur repeated. Vivi nodded.

"Yes! I'm trying to figure out why, but even I can't do it..."

She slumped into Lewis' chest and let out a sigh. The skeleton patted Vivi's head and wrapped his arms around her. He said, "We'll figure it out soon, Vivi. You're the smartest girl I know. Hopefully the wind will die down sometime and we can go out and find some new cases."

"Yeah, _IF_ it ever dies down." She pouted. "It's been a week and the wind has been getting stronger. I'm afraid if it'll go to dangerous levels sometime soon."

"If it does, I'll protect you." Lewis assured. Vivi smiled and nuzzled the bottom of his skull. Arthur turned away from the two and pet Mystery. Even though Lewis and Vivi had dated for a couple of years before the "incident", it was still pretty uncomfortable to see them intimate now. Especially since Arthur felt he had a chance after Lewis was temporarily gone.

He sighed. Those two couldn't ever break apart. Because, when they did, they only ended up getting back together. It was ridiculous for Arthur to ever think of Vivi liking him. Her heart clearly belonged to Lewis and his heart belonged to her. Why did things end up like this? That thought always lingered in the back of his mind for who-knows-how-long.

And, as he pet Mystery, he closed his eyes. If only she was back into the group...

\--

Underneath the ground, between the soil and remnants of fossils was a figure. It was moving 20 MPH in a northern direction that was near Lewis' mansion. When it was 2 miles away, the figure climbed from the dirt and grass and settled herself on the ground. She wiped the mess off of her shirt and looked in the direction of the mansion. She inhaled deeply in the environment around her and muttered.

" ** _Mutt..._** "

She walked towards the mansion and felt the breeze heading her way. In front of the steps were petals that had been flown by from the wind. She took one and analyzed the color, lightly sniffing it. A wide grin spread on her face when she realized that it had his scent. The one she was after. She could already feel the euphoria coming to her.

She'd kill him and everyone he loves. His past can't be hidden forever and the damage he caused still lingered with her. This little red petal will lead her to him eventually. She just had to follow the wind and hope that there was a spirit she could feed off for her powers when the time came.

She dug beneath the Earth and started to head in the direction. She'd be there by a week if things went according to plan.

\--

A heavy feeling was weighing on him. It had been for a long time, but now it was getting heavier. What did he do wrong this time? Surely nothing because he helped save Arthur. That counted as good, right?

Mystery whined and went into a ball once more. The dog was feeling uncomfortable that night and couldn't sleep. He looked at Arthur behind him, who was currently fast asleep and snoring. He didn't know why these thoughts were suddenly coming to mind....He had buried them deep long ago and they never came back up since. He was a good boy! Why did he need to worry?

The dog jumped off the foot of the bed and nudged the door open. He walked down the hallway and stopped at one of the doors. He slightly peeked in and saw Vivi fast asleep in Lewis' arms. The ghost's flame was out, so Mystery assumed that he was asleep, too. The dog sighed in relief. At least they were okay and Lewis was still here. He was important protection against anymore spirits that came to them.

The dog made his way into the kitchen and drank some water out of his bowl. He heard the wind pick up from outside and something tapped on the window. He glanced up and saw that it had been a twig. Something colorful caught his attention, though, so he climbed up on the counter. He took a peek out the window and saw a trail of red petals leading to their house.

He gasped. _Shiromori!_


	2. Snow War

__

"That's right, folks! We have a forecast of snow for the rest of this week. Temperatures will be dropping and wind speeds will be rising. Expect some delays in traffic and put on your warm clothes because it's starting to feel like winter!"

Lewis shuffled through the channels, skull in his hand and legs crossed on the couch. Vivi had been jotting notes down beside him before she suddenly tossed her notepad on the coffee table and laid back, sighing. She glanced over to the kitchen and saw Arthur in his apron, preparing the breakfast for the day. One look from out their boarded-up windows was clear white. It would look like that for the rest of the week, apparently.

Mystery was isolating himself from the rest of them, rolled into a ball in the corner of the couch. He was still shaking off his anxiety from last night. Danger was still coming to them, even if it was a bit slow. By the end of this week, something bad will happen. He just wasn't sure whether to alarm the others or to shrug it off as a coincidence. No flowers were blooming at this time of year, but anything could happen....Right?

In the midst of Mystery's breakdown, Arthur came out of the kitchen and took off his apron, throwing it on Lewis' lap. He took a bow and said, "Breakfast is served!"

"Did you burn it like last time?" Lewis asked, throwing the apron off of him and onto the ground. Arthur gave the ghost a rather annoyed look and motioned for them to go into the kitchen.

Lewis, with a sigh, finally got up and urged his girlfriend to go before him. Vivi obliged rather eagerly and practically ran to the table. Arthur made some eggs, sausages, and toast. It wasn't the biggest breakfast they've had, but it was still something warm. They needed that at a time like this. Lewis took a seat at the head of the table, setting Vivi in his lap. Arthur took a seat at the counter while Mystery ate from his bowl.

"This looks great, Arthur!" Vivi complimented as she got a plate full. The teen chuckled at this compliment and tried to hide his blush. He cleared his throat before replying, "T-Thanks, V."

Lewis gave him a look before turning back to Vivi, who was already stuffing her face with eggs. She hadn't been eating much before because she always had her head deep in her studies. It relieved him to see her starting to eat again. Lewis then leaned back and glanced over to Mystery, who was staring at his food bowls in silence. The ghost decided to bite.

__

What's wrong?

Mystery took a look behind him, completely forgetting that Lewis could communicate with him. Ghosts were such oddballs sometimes. The dog just shook his head and started eating, deciding not to worry anyone for now. He had a week, right? That was plenty of time...

*BELCH*

Vivi immediately put a hand over her mouth, eyes wide open. Everyone in the kitchen turned to look at her in surprise. She nervously giggled and said, "Excuse me..."

Lewis gave her a firm pat on the back, making her belch again. Vivi gave her boyfriend a glare before finishing the rest of her food and laying on him. She said, "Really good breakfast, Arthur. I needed that."

"Yeah, me too." He ran his hand through his hair before collecting the plates. "Plan on doing anything today, V?"

"The snow kind of ruins the plans I had, if that's what you mean." Vivi slouched. Arthur looked at Lewis, awaiting a response from him. It was unlikely the ghost had any, but he could run any errands for them if needed. He couldn't feel the cold nor heat, after all.

"No, I don't have any." Lewis snapped when he noticed Arthur staring at him. The teen backed off a bit and starting putting the dishes in the sink, washing them so he could avoid conversing with Lewis any further. Even though he hadn't harmed him for awhile, the guy still scared Arthur out of his mind!

"Maybe we could play in snow?" Vivi suggested. "I've some backup winter clothes in the van, and we haven't even seen a speck of snow since last Christmas. What do you think, guys?"

"I'll go with you if you want." Lewis said, brushing the strands out from Vivi's face and tucking them behind her ear. He then glanced over at Mystery, who merely looked away from him. Lewis took that a 'yes' because he didn't quite know how else to take it. Arthur was staring down into the sink in thought, as if he were rehearsing his answer in his head.

"You know, we could do that." He said. "Parkhill is said to be a haunted area, so maybe we could use that as an excuse if anyone recognizes us?"

Vivi giggled and nodded. They were starting to become local in Arthur's area and that was another reason they were making so much recently. She turned to Lewis and said, "Lew, you're going to have use your human look if you want to come. Remember last time when everyone saw you?"

"Yeah, yeah." He rolled his eyes and gently took her out from his lap. Vivi gave him a quick kiss before hurrying into her room to get ready. The ghost looked back at Mystery a final time and looked him dead in the eyes.

__

You and I are going to talk in the van. Got it?

Mystery gulped and lowered his head a bit. He communicated, _Yes._

Lewis turned away from him and gave Arthur a final look before heading down into the hallway. Arthur and Mystery sat in the kitchen for awhile, both being completely silent. The dog was starting to wonder if Arthur was hiding something as well...

\--

Parkhill was always empty. The sightings of ghosts and its chilly atmosphere(especially now) spooked everyone away from its area. Shadows, park equipment moving on its own, and disappearances of citizens is what made Parkhill "haunted". Vivi always secretly wanted to go here and she was glad she is now. Arthur shook a bit on the wheel before he parked on the sidewalk next to the park.

The grass was completely covered in snow and the park was empty, save for a couple that was leaving as soon as they arrived. They could hear the wind from outside their van and both Vivi and Arthur looked at Lewis expectantly. He was studying the park.

"Something's here," He said. "But it's not harmful. Want to bring the camera out, V?"

"Of course!" She exclaimed, reaching into the back to grab a camera out from one of their bags. Arthur started to breathe heavily at the thought of another ghost there with them! He knew Lewis was on their side, but he could never trust anything or anyone else. He might die again. Who knows!?

Mystery, on the other hand, was completely numb. He and Lewis did converse in the car but the ghost gave up once the dog became unresponsive. Apparently, Lewis could read minds as well as any fortune teller out there. Mystery had to be careful with his thinking and just reject any questions that came from him. He'd be sure to tell Lewis eventually, but he didn't want to get in the way of them having a good time right now.

Like they always say, he's a good boy. The best he could do is behave until the time comes.

\--

"Oh my god it's so fucking cold..."

Arthur shivered within 1 step out from the van. Vivi was bundled up in her scarf and jacket and even had Lewis' coat as a 2nd layer. She took the camera out and started setting it up as soon as they found a table near the playground. Lewis was staring over at the swings and that's when Arthur noticed that one of them was swinging rather high with no one on it.

Arthur pointed at it and started to shake. He asked, "I-Is...is that...?"

"A little girl." Lewis replied. "See? Nothing here that can harm us. It's usually dead children that come and play here."

"Well, I'm ready!" Vivi heaved the camera over her shoulder, making sure it was recording. "I'll tell you guy when I'm done!"

With that, Vivi ran over to the swings and started recording the unoccupied swing. It should be highly believable before of the gravity-defying aspects and the fact that the wind speeds here were low. Lewis watched her intently from afar. There were plenty of bad, horrifying ghosts in this area and they could come here as easily as they did.

Mystery jumped off of the table and started sniffing around once he felt the urge to pee. He found a nice dead tree in the corner and lifted his leg to relieve himself. His eyes caught yet another colorful petal in the midst of this process. Except...this one was blue. This made Mystery stop in his tracks.

Wait. Blue!? Wasn't she just after HIM?

Quickly, Mystery grabbed the petal in his mouth and started digging a hole. He made sure this was out of their sight and dug as far as he could. He roughly placed the petal in the hole and kicked the dirt back in, flattening it out so it didn't look tampered with. He ran over back to his owners and decided that was enough alone time for him.

"Darn." Vivi set her camera down. Arthur looked up from the table and noticed that the swing stopped moving. She turned around to her ghost boyfriend and ran to him. She asked, "Lew, where did she go?"

"She's resting." He replied. "In other words, she's gone. For now. Sorry, love."

Vivi blushed at the sudden term of endearment and set the camera down on her table. She'd be sure to go over and edit the footage later. Right now, she was focused on making snow angels, wars with snow balls, and eating some of the clean snow she could find. The teenager ran into the field and plopped down, moving her arms and legs to create "wings". Lewis and Arthur watched her in amusement.

Vivi stood and admired her snow creation. She turned over and said, "Come on, Arthur! Join me! I want to see how big of a snowball you can make."

Arthur hesitantly got up, but made his way over to her. He grabbed some snow with his metallic arm and bunched it up. He walked over to show Vivi until a sudden batch of snow hit his face. He dropped the ball and wiped the water off from his nose, slowly backing away from her. He asked, "What the heck, V!?"

"Ha! Tricked ya'." She revealed the snowballs behind her back. "I know Lew Lew can make ones way bigger than you can."

"Oh, really?" Arthur furrowed his eyebrows. He leaned down, collected a HUGE batch of snow, and started to bunch it up. When he looked up at Vivi, she was already running away and making some more of her own. He started to chase her and threw with his all his might at her. This created one of the typical activities of a snow day:

War.

This was when Lewis decided to get up and join them. He, of course, made the biggest snowballs of his own and heaved all he made at Arthur. This ended up being an unfair war, with 2 versus 1. Helpless Arthur had to build a snow fortress to hide himself without the aid of his trustworthy steed. Mystery had a pretty good nose when patting down snow.

The dog sat there on the table and was actually amused to see his owner being overwhelmed with snowballs from a couple. Despite the fun they were having, though, Mystery still felt a deep pit in the bottom of his stomach. A feeling that was telling him that this may be one of their final moments of fun for awhile...

He dearly hoped that wasn't true.


	3. Chapter 3

"Mystery!? Why didn't you help me? I was bombing out there!"

Arthur scolded his dog as the trio left Parkhill. Mystery, in response, simply continued trotting back to the van. He was clearly amused that Arthur suffered the endless amount of snowballs. Lewis and Vivi were the least ruffed up from the fight and it was safe to say they had enough snow for today. Vivi sat in the back of the van and was already reviewing the footage she got. Lewis joined her and Mystery took a proud seat in shotgun.

Arthur, with numb fingers, started up the van and drove off from the park. When he glanced behind him, he saw that Lewis was no longer in his human facade and was now peeking at the video Vivi got. The teenager sighed and turned back to the wheel, focusing on the roads and on their way home. He hadn't thought about their situation in the longest time, nor did he focus on how he felt in anything for a long while.

All in all, Arthur was still gloom. Vivi didn't hang out much with him anymore and he felt Lewis was still plotting to kill him. His only friend was his dog, who _still_ refused to help him out in that snowball fight. Arthur was going to make sure he'd carry that to his grave. At least, when Lewis was gone, he was appreciated better. Now that he's back Arthur was just tossed to the side. That wasn't fair! _HE_ was the one taking care of Vivi while he was gone. Shouldn't HE get some credit?

Arthur took a few breaths to calm himself down and paid the rest of his attention on the road. As much as he'd like to be angry, he really had no right to. It was his fault when you considered many circumstances. He could spend hours thinking of ways that it _wasn't_ , but there was no point. Instead, he shifted his mind onto eavesdropping on what Lewis and Vivi were talking about. He hadn't even realized Vivi called for him awhile ago.

"The forecast predicted that there's going to be a calm day tomorrow." Vivi said. "Do you think we could head over there and take the case?"

...

"Arthur?"

"Huh?" He asked, brown eyes looking in the review mirror. Vivi looked rather upset and Lewis was fiddling with something in the back. Even Mystery was giving Arthur a look of disappointment. He embraced himself for an earful from the two of them.

"You weren't listening at all, were you?" Vivi crossed her arms. Arthur nervously laughed.

"No! I was. Just...repeat? Please?"

She rolled her eyes and sighed. "I _said_ , there's a case in Hummington of a haunted, abandoned motel. A Hollywood producer of some sort wants to use it for the set of a movie but wants to make sure it really isn't haunted. The last investigation team they hired got scared out of their wits so they're looking for someone new. Do you think we should take it? It's just a couple towns over."

"Oh," He replied. "Yeah, sure. How much will it pay?"

"Enough to cover the gas bill of your house." Vivi replied. "Since we've been staying over, I noticed it's skyrocketed. Plus, it's a Hollywood producer we're talking about. There will be plenty."

"Then go for it." Arthur replied. "Even if the weather isn't great, we'll figure out something."

"YAY!" Vivi exclaimed. Clearly, she wanted him to say yes. Arthur found no harm in it at the time, but he had a feeling in his gut it wasn't going to be pleasant. If a professional team got too scared to work anymore, it must be pretty horrifying. There were probably shadows, screams, little girls, scratching.... The teen gulped just at the endless thoughts. If he thought his anxiety got bad at that lake, he was in for a surprise at this motel.

\--

Yes! Yes! YES!

Mystery was trotting around in the yard when the team came back to Arthur's house. Since they were going to be in another town, it'd throw Shiromori completely off track and probably confuse her. Knowing her, she'd be frustrated to no end and would probably search elsewhere and leave them alone. It may be unlikely, but Mystery knew it'd buy them some time. So, least to say, he was ecstatic about them going. Plus, it'd be fun to poke his nose around a new place.

Lewis was carrying their equipment into the van to get it ready for tomorrow. Vivi was insisting on bringing everything they had. Arthur was convinced it was just to impress the producer but she subtly denied it. They were reserved a night to investigate the place and had a complimentary room at a nearby hotel. The producer must have looked their name up and found their past cases quite incredible.

The whole 'ghost being on their team' thing was something they kept to themselves. It'd cause a hypocritical impression for others and it'd seem a bit unfair for other ghost hunters. Lewis was a hidden advantage for them and Mystery was thankful he came back in time. Without him, Vivi and Arthur would be susceptible targets for Shiromori.

The dog started sniffing around for anymore of the petals. The ones he'd find would be dug up and taken by the wind. Some would drift away from the house while others just landed in their neighbor's yards. Anything was good enough for him. When the dog started digging through snow and dirt, he heard Lewis send him a telepathic message.

_What are you doing?_

Mystery perked up and turned around. Lewis' side was covered in snow and he currently was carrying a sound system. The dog's ears fell as he turned around and found the mess he was making. In the hole was one mere petal. Quickly, he discarded it and returned the dirt back to its place. He patted it down with his rear and gave the ghost a sheepish smile. Lewis stared at him before going back to loading the equipment.

_Phew._

_I heard that._

Mystery ran back inside the house. He passed Vivi, who had her arms full of notebooks and supplies. She dropped them off in the passenger seat before taking a look at the cameras and equipment behind the seats. They were placed securely and was a pretty impressive job for a last minute pack. The ghost cracked his back beside her and watched as she piled together her pens and pencils.

Arthur was going to take some of his vacation time off work and Vivi would be missing a couple of days of college. She didn't mind, this would probably pay well in the end. Lewis looked beside her shoulder and read the titles of the books. They were all ghost-related and he even saw a couple in the back that looked like a discussion of the existence of ghosts. She didn't have those before.

"Why do you have these?" He asked, reaching to pick one up. Vivi noticed the cover and blushed.

"I...well," She began. "When I saw that you were real, I didn't know what to think. I picked some books up from the library and tried to figure out how you were real. It didn't work, but I'm just bringing them with us just in case."

Lewis said nothing and he dropped the book back in the pile. He went back inside the house and Vivi wondered if he was a bit upset. She shrugged it off afterwards and made sure everything inside the van was ready. What could he be upset about, anyway? It was just her trying to figure out who he was. She should pick up a few books about those little ghosties of his.

\--

"Who's ready to catch some ghosts!?"

The house was awoken by Vivi making orange juice in the kitchen. Despite her exclamation, she was still in her pajamas and appeared to be a bit sluggish. Lewis and Mystery were still in bed but Arthur was up. He rubbed his eyes while he went into the living room. His hair was a mess and his t-shirt was backwards. He looked at the clock on the microwave and he coughed in surprise.

"Jesus, V! 5 A.M.? Our check in time isn't until 8."

"Yeah, I know." She poured herself a glass. "But I want to head there early. The hotel has complimentary breakfast! Who wouldn't want that?"

"Ya' got me." He yawned, dragging himself over to the coffee maker and brewing some. Vivi was always eager to go to investigations. This wasn't the first time he woke up to her telling him to get up. She once woke him at 3 in the morning to go investigate an amusement park. She said that the ghosts liked to "get up early" and they'd catch them then. Kind of like fish.

Yet, judging by the sleeping ghost in his guest room, Arthur disagreed. He didn't want to knock her excitement down so all he could do was comply and start getting ready. Lewis usually woke up by 7 but had no problems preparing. He seemed a bit troubled last night so maybe that's why he was sleeping in. Mystery was always an eager boy so Arthur let his dog sleep all he could.

Vivi finished packing their snacks and fruits and headed towards the bathroom. Arthur paid no mind to it until he heard the shower running. He ran down the hall and made some disappointed noises. He said, "Vivi! I was about to run one!"

"You snooze, you lose!" She called from inside.

Arthur sighed. He really should start doing things first. Vivi always seemed one step ahead of him. Especially when it came to smarts. She predicted the humans underneath their masks faster than he could and she figured out their stories in an instant. He now learned she was also good at stealing showers. The teen huffed before making his way into his room and getting his clothes gathered. At least he could do _something_ right.

\-------------------------------------------

**"You can't run forever, mutt."**

In the deep pits of a cavern, Shiromori walked along a trail. The red petals she'd been following were slowly dying off. They barely led her to this cave, which seemed to inhabit nothing but bats. It was concealed in a rather deserted area and it'd take her forever to retrace her steps. The anthropomorphic tree scowled as she peered over a cliff and gazed at the stalagmites below.

She found no trace nor hint as to where the mutt was. This place must be a clue but it was completely deserted. Either he was here before or the petals just landed nearby as a coincidence. She'd been feeding off the ghosts on her way but found no energy whatsoever here.

In the midst of frustration, she slammed her hand on the wall of the cave. Its spot cracked but did not break. She threw the dying petals on the floor in anger and started to storm off. If she had to retrace her trail and found the last living petal, she would. She wanted nothing but revenge for what he did.

Suddenly, something struck her. She smelled a very distinct scent and turned around. A trail of pink was encircling her and she looked down to her large hand in surprise. It wrapped around the petal she was currently carrying and sprung it to life. She now had a unique, purple flower to feed on. A ghost whose small power was now encapsulated in her hand.

When she blew on the flower, a new trail of purple petals were leading her outside the cavern. She went outside and saw that the petals were now continuing her previous path. The one she used to track down the mutt. Her grin widened. She now had a new source of power to feed on and would possibly lead her straight to him.

The rage inside her flamed on and she dug beneath the earth to follow the trail. Just a bit more time and she'd have him by the neck.


End file.
